A Butterfly is Just a Caterpillar with Wings
by ShanaAlvarado29
Summary: Yami Sennen was mostly at the bottom of the food chain in Domino High. After leaving on an archaeology expedition in Egypt during one summer, he returns to Domino changed...and yet not. As he finds that he has developed some new-found fame, he becomes irritated because he had not changed at all except for in appearance. And how does Yami's longtime crush handle the change? Two-shot
1. Butterfly Part 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters from the anime. I do own the plot and the OCs. **

**A/N: I have got to stop reading things. Seriously this is ridiculous. I am trying to focus on CG and yet all of a sudden I get slapped across the back of my head about a brand new story that demands to be written, as I was in the middle of reading a transition type story on this site. So, I decided that I would make this oneshot (Perhaps it will turn into a twoshot, but however I choose to write it as, it shall be a short story) and then I would go on straight to the next chapter of Crimson Guardian, since I already know how I'm going to go about chapter twelve. So, here's my short story (Yes, it is mild/hinted prideshipping). Hope you like it, and hang tight because CG is coming at you real soon. (Probably later today, since it's already 2 in the morning here and I need some sleep).  
**

* * *

**A Butterfly is Just a Caterpillar with Wings **

**Part One  
**

"Out of my way, loser."

Yami Sennen yelped quietly as he felt himself being shoved forcibly to the ground, his schoolbooks and notebooks scattering all across the linoleum floor of the hall at Domino High. He wordlessly tried to collect his things while trying to ignore his daily tormentors as best as he could. Mocking laughter could be heard going on over his head, but Yami had grown so used to this kind of ridicule that it hardly registered.

Unfortunately this particular bully wasn't easily ignored, as was proved when a large, shoed foot stomped down on Yami's hand as he reached for his chemistry textbook. He had to bite his lip to keep from crying out in pain.

"Do you really think that you could just get away with being a burden on me?"

Yami looked up, his eyes narrowing behind his thick, wire, coke bottle glasses as he glared up at Preston Blakely, football quarterback and most likely to be voted Senior valedictorian. For all of his looks and suave attitude with the ladies, and his surprisingly remarkable marks in academics, Yami seriously questioned Preston's intellect in thinking up original ways of making Yami's school life hell.

"Heaven forbid I even try to make that attempt, ass munch." Yami shot back.

Preston was tall, about five-eleven in height, and with his record in athletics he had developed a considerable amount of muscle. He had short, platinum blond hair and striking ice-blue eyes that most people found alluring, but Yami honestly didn't see the appeal. Preston was vain and he treated everyone around him as though they were inferior.

Preston's face turned a light shade of purple as his anger at being talked down to pooled within him, and he gripped the front of Yami's collar and pulled the smaller boy up off the ground until he held Yami several inches off of the ground so that they would see eye to eye.

"I will make you regret those words, scum."

"Oh, believe me I already do. Have you ever heard of a tick-tack, man?"

Yami really needed to learn when to keep his mouth shut, as was proved when Preston slammed Yami back against the lockers. His head banged against one of the padlocks, dazing him slightly.

"I will kill you."

Just as Preston was reeling his fist back to connect with Yami's face, a cold, menacing, commanding voice coming from their left caught their attention and stopped Preston cold.

"What is going on here?"

Both boys turned to see that they had attracted quite a crowd around them, but it was the boy at the front of the group that held them riveted.

Seto Kaiba stood there, tall and proud, his cold cerulean eyes burning holes into Preston as he scowled his displeasure at him.

"Have you no more dignity that you would lower yourself to beating on a guy who is clearly smaller and weaker than you? Where is your pride, Blakely?" Kaiba demanded.

Preston couldn't make a sound in reply. If there was one person more popular or influential in this school, it was Seto Kaiba. He was the teenaged CEO of a major, multibillion dollar international gaming company, was one of the richest men in the entire world, was the world's greatest Duel Monsters champion, and to top it all, the man was drop-dead gorgeous. Taller than Preston and lean yet muscular in stature, Kaiba had shoulder-length, thick chocolate-colored hair, the most beautiful pair of blue eyes, was a little of the pale side but that also worked well in Kaiba's favor. His main flaws, however, was his arrogance, his ego, and that monstrous coldness he directs toward everyone and everything in his presence.

Preston dropped Yami, who landed easily on the balls of his feet, and stalked off in hopes of avoiding further conflict with the unofficial King of Domino.

Yami finished collecting his books and papers off of the ground, murmured a quick thank-you to Kaiba and started off in the direction of his next class.

* * *

"That's quite the bump you've got forming there. How did you say you hurt yourself?" Mai Kujaku, the school nurse, asked as she placed an icepack on the back of Yami's skull.

"I didn't. And I would think that it would be obvious even without my telling you how and who had given me this injury." Yami growled low.

Mai tsked at Yami, "Yami, you've got to learn to pick your fights more carefully."

"It's not like I ever asked for them in the first place! I just want to be left alone." Yami said, his agitation at the massacre his high school life had become. He was only glad he only had the next two weeks and next year to put up with this, and then he could go off to university to begin his studies in the hope that he would one day become an archaeologist, like his grandfather.

"I know you don't, hun, but I also know how stubborn you can be, or how violent you become when cornered. But you're only human, and one day you're going to push a little too far. I hate to see you hurt like this."

The sincerity in Miss Kujaku's eyes burned Yami to the core. Very few people truly cared about him personally, and of those people, only three of those people are not related. Yami inclined his head in acknowledgement and silent gratitude before quieting down, hoping his horrid migraine would go away.

"I won't call your grandpa about this, but I really wish you would talk to someone about this before it becomes any worse."

"If it does, then I will. There is no reason to bring them into something this trivial."

Mai looked disapproving, but Yami was dead set in his resolve. This boy was selfless to a fault…but sometimes that selflessness could become selfishness if one doesn't remember where the line is drawn.

"Well, lay back and rest for a while. I'll come and wake you once school lets out." And with that, Mai went into her office, leaving Yami alone to wrestle with the same insecurities he had to fight back every night before he went to sleep at night.

What was it about him that everyone seemed to detest so much? They all seemed such superficial reasons, like his glasses. He had always had problems seeing as he was growing up, but his grandfather's income wasn't enough to pay for so-called stylish "shades", and yeah he was shorter and waif thin, but that wasn't his fault either. Shortness seemed to run rampant in Yami's family, and he had been born with a very fast metabolism that made gaining weight near to impossible. He was fairly pale, but what did that have anything to do with the way people seemed to hate him so.

Would he change these things? Truthfully no. They were such stupid reasons for ridicule, and Yami couldn't care less what Preston Blakely and the others had to think about him.

What seriously sucked was that he couldn't say the same about how Seto Kaiba might see him.

Gah, that's something he could do without. The physical things he could cope with, but being gay was a whole different story. And having a longtime crush on the world's most eligible bachelor is a whole new level of stupid.

Once again, he repeated the litany of truth in his mind that made things both better and worse for Yami.

_Two weeks and nine months to go, and then you'll never have to see him again._

While these dismal thoughts spun circles in Yami's head, he slowly dropped into a light doze. It was a pleasantly welcome distraction to the distressing thoughts he had begun to turn to.

* * *

"I'm home." Yami called out lamely, his head still aching.

"Good afternoon, Yami. How was school today?" His grandpa, Solomon Sennen, called out from the living room.

"It was fine. I'm going up to my room to sleep for a bit. I'm wiped out." Yami announced as he made his way to the stairs leading to his and his little brother Yugi's rooms.

"Hold up a second." Solomon said as he appeared in the doorway connecting the foyer to the living room, "I've got some good news for you. You remember my friend Arthur right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, he is scheduled to go on an archaeological dig in Egypt this summer, and when I told him that you wanted to be an archaeologist, he suggested that, if you were willing of course, that you could go with him and get some field experience under your belt."

Yami held in his excitement for a moment, trying to figure out if there was a catch to this, "What about you?"

"Ah, my back is giving me too many fits for me to go on an expedition. Plus, it would look great on college applications, and it gets you out of Domino for a while. I know you didn't have too many things planned this summer, so I thought you might like to go."

"Yes. That's perfectly all right. Thank you!" Yami grabbed his grandpa in an enthusiastic hug as he laughed and cheered while he headed p to his room.

"You'd best start getting packed then, Arthur says that he's got a plane leaving for Cairo on Sunday."

"But today's Friday." Yami said, slightly stupidly.

"Yes, which is why you'd best hurry and pack."

* * *

Sunday morning, Yami stood in the airport terminal waiting to board the airplane, his carry-on duffle hanging off of his left shoulder as he practically vibrated in his excitement. An entire three and a half months of digging, exploring, and discovering things that were years, decades, even centuries old. Three and a half months of no stupid bullies. He didn't have to spend those same three and a half months feeling slightly lonely, watching as everyone else has things they could enjoy over the summer while Yami used his time t read and research. Yugi, Yami's younger brother, was sweet and kind, and he would try to get Yami to join in the fun time he shared with his small group of friends, but Yami would only feel awkward around Yugi's friends.

Now, he didn't have to worry about anything.

"Flight 737 to Cairo, Egypt now boarding. Please proceed to the dock and have your tickets out and ready for inspection." A male tenor said over the loudspeaker.

"Are you ready, Yami?" Arthur Hawkins asked as he rejoined Yami after his trip to, most likely, the restroom.

"Oh yes."

Arthur laughed at the boy's excitement as the two men stepped up in line to board their plane.


	2. Butterfly Part 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own the anime or the characters from the anime. I own the plot and a few OCs. **

**A/N: I aim to please. You wanted it, so here you go. Part two of Butterfly – the Transformation. **

* * *

**A Butterfly if Just a Caterpillar with Wings**

**Part 2  
**

Yugi Sennen was excited to see his big brother after so many months of being separated. He hoped that this summer had gone well for Yami, that he found a way to have a good time in Egypt. Yugi felt so awful that Yami didn't seem to fit in with anyone, and although he did try to get Yami included in things that he and his friends liked to do, the stigma from their high school seemed to have rubbed off on Yugi's friends, because rarely did any of them want to be seen with Yami. It made Yugi unbearably angry; Yami was his hero, and the fact that his friends couldn't see past the name-calling and the exterior appearance to see the guy underneath it all.

Yami's plane was landing in about fifteen minutes, and Yugi, his grandpa, and his best friend Joey Wheeler were all waiting to pick Yami up and take him home.

When Yami had left for Egypt, he would write at least twice a week, but as the time past, they heard less and less from Yami until they had all but dropped out of contact with each other completely. Yugi understood that Yami was most likely extremely busy with the dig, but Yugi missed his brother.

"Flight 429 flying from Cairo, Egypt is now landing." A female voice announced over the loudspeaker, and Yugi bounced on the balls of his feet, nearly jumping in his enthusiasm to see Yami.

He had been so focused on looking for Yami that he all but forgotten that Joey was still there. And it was probably a good thing too, because now as Joey's voice began filtering through Yugi's notice, Yugi's excitement was immediately dampened over the things his supposed best friend was saying.

"I hope nobody sees us from school here."

"Excuse me? Why would you hope that, Joey?" Yugi asked, his ire clearly apparent in his voice, but he still kept his signature smile in place.

"Ah, come on Yugi. Even you have to realize that Yami is kind of a loser. If we get caught with him by anyone from school and we'll be a laughing stock just like he is."

Just as Yugi was about to make a comment in defense of his brother, he spotted a familiar head of spiked, tri-colored hair and a huge smile broke across his smile. And then, he moved his eyes to meet Joey's amber ones, his smile changing into an uncharacteristically sly smirk, "Turn around and see for yourself how much of a loser Yami is."

Curious over Yugi's comment, Joey spun around…and froze.

_This _couldn't be Yami. There was no way in hell or heaven that this beautiful creature could possibly be the same geeky, four-eyed nerd that was always the butt of everyone's jokes.

This creature was the same height as Yami and the odd-colored hair, but that was as far as the similarities between the two teenagers would go.

This Yami had finally grown into his full potential. The work in Egypt had sculpted his previously waif thin frame with well-toned muscle, and hours out in the sun had given Yami a honey-copper glow to his once pasty-white skin tone. He had gotten rid of those ridiculous seventies-style glasses for a pair of contacts, leaving the full measure of Yami's glorious scarlet eyes for everyone to appreciate.

He wore a white button-up shirt that was left open, and a black tank top underneath that, black, straight-leg jeans that clung closely to Yami's hips and thighs and yet still left breathing room around Yami's ankles, and a pair of black and red Etnies with red shoelaces laced up the front. He was dragging one suitcase behind him while his carry-on duffle was slung across his shoulder.

"Wow…" Joey breathed.

"Yeah, not a loser now, is he?" Yugi taunted before he lunged toward his older brother and almost knocked Yami off of his feet in his enthusiasm. "I'm so glad you're home. You've got to tell me everything. You look great Yami, by the way."

Yami chuckled at Yugi and replied, "Thank you."

Oh dear God, Yami picked up the most exotic sounding accent from staying so long in Egypt. His plain baritone voice now blended in with the graceful lilting of the Egyptian accent, making Yami just that much more attractive.

Joey was left standing in the middle of the terminal, his jaw slack, eyes popping out from his head, while Yugi, Yami, and their grandfather got into the car.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Joey shouted after them once he realized they were just about to leave him at the airport.

* * *

"The cave nearly collapsed all around me. It was pitch dark down there, and I couldn't make even the smallest sound for fear it would trigger a cave-in. I found my flashlight in my work belt and switched it on, trying to get a better look at my surroundings. I was trapped on all sides, but there was a small hole near the roof of the cave where I had to reach in order to get out. I put the flashlight in my mouth and kept the light focused on the wall closest to the hole in the ceiling. As I climbed to the top of the cave, one of the rocks I had grabbed onto fell loose from the wall, and I nearly lost my grip entirely, but I kept my footing, and as the rock hit the ground of the cave, I could hear a deafening roar from where the cave was beginning to collapse. I let go of the flashlight and relied on hope that I could make it out alive. Just as I broke through the hole in the ceiling, something cut me on my shoulder here, and although it bled pretty badly, I was alive. Doctor Hawkins tended the wound, but he said I'll have a scar here for the rest of my life." Yami finished one of many stories that had Yugi and Solomon at the edge of their seats.

This particular story was started when Yugi noticed Yami had a few stitches protruding past the sleeve of his button-up shirt during dinner. It seemed that Yami had his share of adventures while on his expedition in Egypt.

"All right boys, go on and start getting ready for bed. You've got school in the morning." Solomon reminded as he gathered up the dishes from their ice cream and brought them to the sink.

"Oh, how could I forget?" Yami grumbled.

"Don't worry Yami, I'm sure that everything will be all right." Yugi encouraged.

"Maybe, but I doubt it." Yami said as he started up the stairs to get in a shower before bed.

* * *

Yami walked onto campus the next morning expecting the worst, and yet things weren't exactly the way he expected them to be. First of all, the second he set foot on school grounds, everyone within sight turned and stared at him, and this made him exceedingly uncomfortable. Subconsciously, Yami itched the side of his nose before he readjusted the straps of his backpack on his shoulders before continuing.

A girl rushed up beside him and she was twirling her hair around one finger in what he assumed was supposed to have been in a seductive manner. _What the hell?_

"Hey handsome, you new around here?" The girl asked, her voice low and husky, again something that was supposed to have been seductive.

"Uh, no. I've been going here since freshman year." Yami said as his temper was piqued.

"Oh, well I don't think that's quite right. I would've remembered seeing such hunk like you before if you had."

"Look, Tessa, I don't have time for your bullshit." Yami snapped, "I think I hear your boyfriend calling for you."

And with that, Yami left Tessa standing there, dumbfounded and confused. Nobody had ever rejected her before. In a tiff, Tessa stomped off in search of Chris Devereux, her on-again, off-again boyfriend of two years.

* * *

Yami continued on in search of senior homeroom to receive his new class schedule, feeling explicitly uncomfortable with the blatant stares he was receiving.

Girls called out greetings to him; guys seemed to want to be friends with him. Even some of his more prominent bullies tried to pass the last three years off as though nothing damaging had happened between them and Yami.

His hand tightened around one of his backpack straps as he ground his teeth together.

The last straw was Preston Blakely, who nonchalantly wrapped an arm around his shoulders, "Hey man, I wanted to apologize for all those nasty things I did to you."

Yami gripped Preston's wrist, locked it, and twisted his arm around behind his back.

"You don't get to touch me, ever." Yami growled.

He looked around at the people still in the hall around him, all still staring at him in a mixture of awe and surprise.

"What the hell is wrong with you people? Have you all lost your minds? Why do you all of a sudden decide that now is a good time to try and make me feel like your equal? Just because I may look a little different doesn't mean that I am any more different than last year, or the year before that, you shallow, mindless, pathetic morons. So don't you dare try to come to me now, just because I lost my glasses or got a tan and think that I'll just forget all that shit you put me through these last few years. Find someone else to worship, I've had enough."

* * *

Seto Kaiba was honestly quite impressed with this boy's speech. Very few people would ever have the strength to stand up and say flat out those kinds of things, as proudly as he did.

For the longest time, Kaiba had not identified with any of these stupid fools he was forced to attend high school with. If he had a choice, he never would have even bothered with school at all, seeing as he was already so provincial and was considered a genius, ran his own company and possessed a fortune. He didn't need school with everything else he already had, but the law required him to have a high school diploma, and so he had figured he would just skate through it and not have to care about anyone else.

Last year when he had stopped Blakely from pummeling that nerdy kid, he had surprised himself. He usually couldn't care less about anyone but himself and his little brother Mokuba.

Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that he hated all types of bullies and that he didn't like seeing anyone being picked on in any way. Maybe the kid had reminded him somewhat of Mokuba and that he wanted to protect him just this once because he was so much like his little brother.

But then when you get right down to it, Kaiba couldn't deny that it was the look on the boy's face, that although Preston was probably moments away from beating the living daylights out of him, he could still stare unashamedly, unafraid into Preston's eyes and openly taunt him despite what might happen to him as a result. That pride, that burning fire within the kid had been the driving force that had caused Kaiba to step in on the boy's behalf. It had nothing to do with bullies in general, or his little brother, and had everything to do with the minute respect he held for the guy at that point.

Now, listening to that same guy put Preston in his place once more made Kaiba respect him even more, so much so that he was even tempted to try and get to know the kid a little better. In a lot of ways the kid reminded Kaiba of himself.

Once the hallway cleared out and the kid was alone in the hall gathering things out of his locker, Kaiba stepped forward.

"Hey kid."

The boy turned to level a glare at Kaiba, "What do you want?" He asked in a harsh tone of voice.

"I heard what you just said. That took guts, you know. It made me realize that not everyone in this God-forsaken place is completely stupid. I'm Seto Kaiba."

The boy hesitated, his scarlet eyes searching Kaiba's as if looking for something specific in his cerulean orbs.

Finally, he grinned slightly, "Who doesn't know who you are? I'm Yami Sennen."

* * *

At that moment, three years ago, Yami had realized that things in high school didn't always suck. Yeah, it was difficult, and that people were mostly stupid and ran solely on adrenaline and sex, but of the minority, Yami found where he belonged. His appearance might have changed, but he as a man didn't, and that was what he stayed true to.

He went on to university and pursued his career as an archaeologist, specializing in Egyptology. He lives in a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in downtown Tokyo, Japan. When Yugi graduated from high school, he was accepted into Tokyo University to become a teacher. Solomon passed away a year after Yugi left for college, and although it was a sad event, they knew that their grandfather was no longer in any pain.

As for Yami and Kaiba…well, they realized that they had something else in common. After a year of friendship, Yami and Kaiba had grown past the point of just friends. One night while they were at a New Year's Eve celebration, things got a little out of control, and the two spent that night and many others following that night in each other's arms.

There's a saying that there is a fine line between friendship and love. Where that line was drawn between Yami and Kaiba is unknown, but it is believed that they had crossed that line on the morning that Kaiba had introduced himself.

The point of all this is that, Yami was always the same person he always was. He didn't want fame or acceptance if he had to fit some sort of social standards in order to get that. Yami never wavered in who he was, nobody would ever be able to change him in any way, shape, or form. He was dead set in staying the way he was, and he had people who loved him just for the way he was.

And just so you know, this last month Kaiba asked Yami to marry him. The wedding date is still undecided, but both are more than thrilled to spend the rest of their lives with the other.

So, in all things, one must always stay true to themselves, and that they should never even try to change for anyone or anything. Sure, people may not like a certain thing about you, and you will most likely become an object of ridicule in some fashion, but if you just hold on and keep those who really matter close to you, things will always turn out the way that they should.


End file.
